Kirsten Ring Murray, design principal at Olson Kundig Architects, imagined a softening reposition of 800 Fifth Avenue, a monumental office tower in Seattle’s financial district.
Toward that end, Resolute was asked by Jason Edling, principal at Niteo (Lighting Design) to create two very large but soft lighting installations.
A nearly 18 foot long fixture was designed and fabricated for over the lobby reception desk. Blackened steel frames a soft, organic cotton “shade”. The steel grid is echoed by standing seams sewn in to the fabric.
Primary iIllumination is by a powerful, carefully diffused LED array. Discrete micro LED downlights are incorporated in the bottom of the steel framework to add a crisp edge to task light on the work surface below.
A grid of related soft boxes covers the ceiling of the nearby “living room” – a comfortable gathering space for tenants and their guests.
These boxes are evenly illuminated by high CRI, precisely dimmable LED. As with the reception fixture, a subtle plaid was created by sewing details in the fabric. It all looks easy but major challenges with structural support as well as mechanical and sprinkler interference had to be worked through. No one will ever notice!
800 Fifth project images on Olson Kundig
